Florida used to be the premier spot for Major League Baseball’s spring training, but a growing number of professional teams are heading to Arizona instead of the Sunshine State for their preseason workouts.

The Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees 7 to 3 on Opening Day Sunday, perhaps fueling the optimism of fans in the team's 20th year.

The beginning of a new baseball season is one of the times that proves the statement, "hope springs eternal." The similarities between the tenets of religion and baseball are the subject of a Monday afternoon event sponsored by the University of South Florida's Religious Studies Club.

MLB spring training is well underway, and there's a lot of talk about multimillion dollar renovations at Tampa Bay area stadiums. They're supported in part by local tax dollars.

The Detroit Tigers have unveiled a revamped facility in Lakeland. The New York Yankees have done the same in Tampa, and Dunedin is planning upgrades for the Toronto Blue Jays. Sarasota County is opting to start from ground zero, potentially investing in a new $75 million facility for the Atlanta Braves.

In 204 days, two teams will face off in the World Series. Until then, fans can dream about their team winning it all, as Major League Baseball's regular season gets going. St. Louis and Chicago played the first game Sunday night; the Cubs lost, 3-0.

Along with that loss, Chicago's fans also endured restroom wait times of up to 30 minutes. Blaming the problem on at least two bathrooms being closed, the club has apologized, Chicago news TV WGN says.

International Baseball will make its return to St. Petersburg this Friday for its fifth season.

Mayor Rick Kriseman held a news conference Tuesday afternoon with Tampa Bay Rays president Brian Auld and representatives from the Canadian Junior National Team and All Stars from the Puerto Rican Development Program to announce the 2015 schedule of St. Petersburg International Baseball.

Buck O'Neil rose from humble beginnings in Sarasota's Newtown neighborhood to become the first black coach in the major leagues. He was able to tell stories spanning almost the whole history of baseball, from Babe Ruth to the Negro Leagues, to Bo Jackson. As Newtown celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, Ian Cummings of The Sarasota Herald-Tribune reports he was the most famous public figure to ever come from their neighborhood.

Every Monday, WUSF 89.7 presents Story Corps Tampa Bay, and this week’s story comes from a recording at the John F. Germany Public Library in Tampa as part of the “StoryCorps @ your library” series.

Today we meet two professional baseball players who played in the Negro Leagues in the 1940's, Clifford "Quack" Brown and Walter "Dirk" Gibbons. Both men grew up in Tampa and they sat down with their friend, Neil J. Armstrong, who asked about those colorful nicknames.

There is an innovation in sports science now being tested that some say could change the future of baseball. With arm injuries rampant across all levels of baseball, the Motus Sports Sleeve is being touted to give the feedback pitchers need to help prevent arm injuries.

His big-league career began in the 1950s and included the most recent Yankees dynasty. Along the way, the word "beloved" was often attached to his name. Baseball — the players, the fans, seemingly the sport itself — is mourning Don Zimmer today, after he died at age 83 Wednesday.

The tributes to the feisty guy with a good sense of humor and a bottomless love for the game are pouring out from all over, proof that he didn't waste any time during his 66 years in baseball. In recent years, Zimmer had been suffering from kidney and heart problems.

Some things turn us to mush every time: Cute animals. Sappy Publix commercials. And most of all, surprise military reunions.

Nine-year-old Alayna Adams was chosen to throw out the first pitch at Thursday night's Rays game. What the Dunedin girl didn't know was that the catcher wasn't a pro ball player. It was her dad, Lt. Col. Will Adams, just home from Afghanistan.

After Alayna threw the ball, her father caught it. Then he lifted his catcher's mask. Alayna raced toward him and leaped into his arms.

If you have ever dreamed of playing big-league baseball, chances are the dream started to fade sometime in high school.

It gradually becomes clear: You won't be starting in Game 7 of the World Series, and tipping your cap after hitting a walk-off homer. So at some point you go from player to fan — watching others chase greatness on the diamond.

But not every baseball dreamer is willing to give up so early. And in Bradenton, Fla., there's a place that lies somewhere between the Little League field and Yankee Stadium.